Thor's Well - Cape Perpetua

“breathtaking natural salt-water fountain”

Near Cape Perpetua, Oregon lies one of the most insanely majestic natural wonders in all of America-- a collapsed seacave that has formed a saltwater fountain that's boiling with crashing whitecaps. During high tide, water from the Pacific Ocean rushes into the rocky hole in the coast with a spray of ocean mist. Such a rad natural feature of course has a fittingly awesome name: Thor's Well. I think Odin would approve.
Before all you photographers start packing up your gear and heading out to get your own shot of this phenomenon, be warned: getting close to it is no easy feat, especially since the well looks the coolest when conditions are most dangerous-- high tide and during storms. The hole is decievingly deep, 20 feet or more of jagged rock, and you can never tell when an unexpectedly ginormous wave will come surging past the well, knocking down anyone who might be in the way and dragging them out to sea.
If you're less of a daredevil and still want to see the well in all its treacherous glory, there's a viewing platform nearby. Taking a hike around the coast will also provide views of other rocky formations like the Spouting Horn, which spurts up a geyser of water when a wave hits it, Cook's Chasm, another natural, wave-powered geyser, and the Devil's Churn, a narrow, rocky inlet where the water violently swirls and tosses. If you head out to see the sights, make sure to wear study shoes-- and be prepared to get wet! -Roadtrippers
Along the Cape Perpetua coastline there are several unique features as well. The Devil’s Churn is a long crack in the coastal rock that fills with each ocean wave, occasionally exploding as incoming and outgoing waves collide. The Spouting Horn at Cook's Chasm and the Thor's Well on the plateau nearby are both a salt water fountain driven by the power of the ocean tide. Devil’s Churn, Spouting Horn and Thor's Well are popular with visitors; however, all three can be dangerous especially at high tide and during winter storms.
Cape Perpetua is a large forested headland on the central Oregon Coast which projects into the Pacific Ocean. The land is managed by the United States Forest Service as part of the Siuslaw National Forest.
Cape Perpetua is located about 2 miles (3 km) south of Yachats, Oregon along U.S. Route 101. It is a typical Pacific Northwest headland, forming a high steep bluff above the ocean. At its highest point, Cape Perpetua rises to over 800 feet (240 m) above sea level. From its crest, an observer can see 70 miles (110 km) of Oregon coastline and as far as 37 miles (60 km) out to sea on a clear day.
For at least 6,000 years Native Americans hunted for mussels, crabs, sea urchins, and clams along the coast near Cape Perpetua. Evidence of their lives can still be found in the huge piles of discarded mussel shells that lie along the shore near the Cape Perpetua Visitor Center.

I just posted a picture from today. There should be 4 people in this photo. One is under water. They were standing near Thor's Well. They all made it out alive, but pretty shaken. Just before this some young people got rolled by the waves and lacerated on the sharp rocks.

This was really tricky to find. It is not on any of the signs they have for the park. It is very close to the spouting horn. The spouting horn has a spot for viewing. You can walk down a path by the viewing platform...Thor's Well is on that path. There is a bench on the path...you can look from there and see it. It is hard to see from there, but when I went tide was up and they recommend you not go down there as it is dangerous during high tide. That is supposed to be the best time to view it, though. While you are there check out the spouting horn and right up the road is Devil's Churn. It is also interesting, but the least out of the three in my opinion.

A very beautiful place. The shoreline there is amazing! We were lucky enough to see a bunch of killer whales and a few of them breached! If you are a photographer don't be an idiot and forget your tripod like me! Also be prepared to fight the millions of other photographers that are trying to get a better shot than you lol

A perfect roadside stop. Run the location through a GPS though, since it looks just like any other viewing point on the Oregon Coast Highway and there's no indication of Thor's Well at the top. You'll know you're there since it shares the same location as the Spouting Horn.

Supposedly, the well is best seen approximately an hour before high tide to an hour after high tide, though we arrived right at low tide and still had fun exploring the rocky shore by foot.

This was a disappointment- I saw such great pictures of this place and planned my vacation around it. I'm sure during the right time of day and year it is amazing, but not on June 21 2015 at 11:00 am. Just a hole